Former Conservative Party leader Erin O’Toole believes his successor Pierre Poilievre needs to change his policies in order to compete with Prime Minister Mark Carney’s Liberal Party.
“I think they do need to moderate some of the positions to reach out to more Canadians,” O’Toole said in an interview with Global News.
“If you look at what the Liberals have done with Mark Carney, they have a leader who is more to the centre, centre-right. They don’t have (Justin) Trudeau on the further left anymore. They have to adapt to Canada as it is now … and the opponent Conservatives have now.”
While O’Toole says Poilievre has done a good job of holding the government to account, he is urging the party to “ignore the culture war issues, ignore the floor crossings, and just focus on the long-term prosperity of Canadians.”
O’Toole led the federal Conservatives between 2020 and 2022, losing the 2021 election to the Liberals under Trudeau. O’Toole was ousted after the Conservative caucus voted to remove him during the Freedom Convoy’s protest in downtown Ottawa.
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The former party leader still believes Poilievre will lead the Tories into the next election, but was critical of the party’s embrace of social media influencers under Poilievre.
“Some of the influencers within the conservative movement now are the biggest gifts to the Liberal Party I’ve ever seen. Ignore all those so-called influencers. They’re going to guarantee you a loss in the next election,” O’Toole said.
Poilievre has done multiple interviews with influencers since blowing a 20-point lead in the polls and losing the 2025 federal election. The party also granted media accreditation to prominent influencers during the last election campaign and gave special accreditation for influencers during the recent Conservative convention.
O’Toole believes the party is too beholden to what those influencers are posting.
“Pierre is a smart policy person as well, so maybe he wants to have a Conservative thinkers conference — not a Conservative tweeters conference — and come up with some smart ideas for the future,” O’Toole told Global News.
O’Toole joined the Prime Minister’s Advisory Committee on Canada-U.S. Economic Relations on Tuesday and was very complimentary of Carney.
“Prime Minister Carney is a smart and passionate Canadian,” O’Toole said. “The old tricks that (the Conservatives) used to pull out on Mr. Trudeau aren’t going to work with this guy. So (the Conservatives) might as well acknowledge that and come up with a new strategy.”
Focusing on the four MPs who have left the Conservatives for the Liberals since the 2025 election is also the wrong approach, according to O’Toole.
“My advice to Pierre has been simple: ignore the floor crossings and the machinations of how (the Liberals) got a majority and hold the government to account.”
The Conservative and NDP floor-crossers secured Carney a majority government, which O’Toole believes is a positive for the country.
“I actually think with everything going on with the United States right now and the state of the world, it’s okay to have some stability in Parliament.”
That stability can also present an opportunity for Poilievre, according to O’Toole, who believes the Conservatives have a chance to present a strong plan to deal with trade and national unity.
“I think Mr. Poilievre is one of the most talented parliamentarians there is in the House of Commons, and that can be very helpful for a leader of the Opposition,” he said.
how does it work, conservative joining libs? arnt the principles opposite. the floor crossers have proved to me that the cons and libs are the same. always voted ppc because i refuse to vote strategically. better to vote for what you want. if pp becomes like carney then what exactly is the difference? we need a western block party where every vote costs concessions. we should mirror the block Quebecois. anything they demand we demand. anything they get we get. to hell with the rest of canada this country is only as good as what you can get out of them. if we cant separate lets take them for everything. the west and quebec will split yhe spoils. everyone pays for the privilege of being able to call this land canada. gooo carney
Erin and Carney look like bothers, just that Erin is chubbier.
Both have bland flour and water personalities.
Libs had no problem with a part time drama teacher and snowboarding instructor running Canada into the ground for over a decade and
Now they make fun of PPs credentials? What hypocrites.
Now Liberal hacks like Otoole as he is on their payroll.
Otoole lost as he kept changing his policy positions daily depending on how CBC critiqued them. He didn’t have a winning instinct.
Also both himself and his wife (and his children) were obese and Ofoole was younger than Trudeau but looked 25 years older.
Otoole lost as he constantly kept changing his policies daily and quite frankly both himself and his wife (and kids) were obese. He was younger than Trudeau but looked 20 years older.
Mr Poilevre does add some creative word salad to his rebutal, but not as effective with Carney (vs Trudeau). That said, after a while he sounds like the neighbourhood dog barking.. Please bring him in or feed him. His plan & path have now timed out. But please enjoy & say thank you for the lifestyle Cdn taxpayers have dished out without any payback.
I found Otoole to be a total cheeseball. Constant contradictions on policy and flip flops. I am glad the Conservative Caucus deep sixed him when they did.
Yes Mr. Thompson and that line is about as tired as Trudeau’s, Sunny Ways! Really, all you freaks have is Poilievre to chortle about. NOTHING ELSE! Your argument is moot!
Most Canada can see Carney for what he is and where he is ‘leading’ this country. Fascism might suit a Lib, but not a Canadian. We fought AGAINST THAT remember?
Liberals-Anti Canadian to the core.
PP was a one trick pony. Trudeau Carbon Tax. He has nothing now Trudeau left. Trudeau screwed him royally lol. Conservatives need a strong leader. Rona Ambrose should have stayed.
Liberals good! Conservatives bad!
This is journalism?
Global needs to moderate its biased position to compete with real independent Journalists.
the one who threw the election he was in wants to give advice he went from winning to outright throwing the election thats not who should give advice not even to a toilet
If Erin has all the answers and the winning formula why didn’t he win in 2021. His advice is quite rich considering the Conservatives kicked him to the curb.
Otoole isn’t a conservative. He is a Liberal that ran for Leader of the Conservative Party. His whole campaign was he wasn’t Justin Trudeau and he even endorsed a more foolish carbon tax. He tried and failed. CPC got more seats in 2025 than in 2021 under Otoole. Otoole was denounced by both grass roots Conservatives and Liberals when he was the leader
O’Toole is right and would have been the leader of government if the Tory’s had stuck with him, He was too smart to get stained by mixing with anti-vaxxers & truck convoy occupation. Sticking with good fiscal management, strong military and small efficient civil is enough to win the vote rich dense population regions. Sounding too much like a angry south US cracker loses the swing votes
Conservatives sure like to criticize and talk about Mr. EBY and MR. CARNEY… and are experts on it all. But I guess if I had ATLEAST 3 years to sit around with nothing to do I’d probably do the same thing.
well, How much did he get to be a fool?
Stabbing Pierre in the back O’Toole. No wonder Carney has appointed him to negotiations with the U.S. Is he going to be the next crossover?
Poilievre can never compete with Carney….end of story.
Liberals illegally 5 billion plus in stolen taxpayers money to control mainstream propaganda media in Canada is the major issue.
What democracy allows over 5 billion taxpayers dollars be used to promote Liberals agenda and spread false information on opposition. None Canada is a communist dictatorship.
OToole was easy pickings for PP just like Joe Clark was easy pickings for Mulroney.
OToole and Clark are honest and therefore obviously in the wrong business.
Politicians in general are marginally only better than divorce lawyers and serial killers.
But I sound a little cynical.
I voted fir O’Toole, precisely because he was a leader willing to talk policy and he stayed away from rhetoric. He’s bang on with Pierre; Pierre’s style of politics would work well in the US, but here the majority of Canadians find it repugnant. I think we all want leaders that have a plan and are willing to explain that plan. What we don’t want is a plan that is simply the anti-other party’s plan… we want substance!
@MacNamara lmao where is the actual results he promised us? He promised that he would get a deal with Trump by July 25. He hasn’t even come close to a deal and it is almost May 26. Keep smoking whatever it is that allows you to be fooled over and over and over by Carney.
O’Foole is making noise after he is being paid by Carney to sit on a committee. Says it all about that guy
No… What Pierre needs to do is resign and move on from politics, if he doesn’t than the Conservative are going to enjoy losing ever elections
Isn’t it interesting that Carney has put O’Toole on his new committee the man is now coming out telling Poilievre how to act. I wonder if another conservative has been taken over to the dark side. Conservatives didn’t want O’Toole as the leader because he was weak and are not interested in what he has to say now
There’s a reason O’Toole lost the leadership. He made promises then did a 180 to break them.
Carney is doing the same thing. Only idiots still buy his wishy-washy “promises” and propaganda. Libs won only meager minority, thrice. They adopted the floor crossing traitors to win dirty, that’s their style – make promises only to break them, and steal election platform points to make themselves look good.
Hey Subject of Cubanada, Carney won because there is more credibility and trust with someone that has extensive skill and experience in economics going into a turbulent period with the US on trade, versus a ‘career politician’ like PP who lacks any depth and bends to the worst in his party. I don’t get how the right can’t seem to grasp that Carney is not Trudeau – I mean I get not wanting to get new stickers and flags, but come on.
@ Fester
How do CPC didn better in 2025 than in 2021 under OToole.
Canada has 4 federal progressive parties. We don’t need another one. If conservatives win by becoming liberal then conservatives winning is meaningless.
The Liberals will sink again just like they did with Trudeau .Considering that Canadians were obtuse enough to keep him in power for 10 years,let alone elect him in the first place, it will take more time to realize the party is the same circus of indolent sloths that have only adopted a new ring leader to woo the masses.
If Trudeau would have stayed on for the last election,it would have been a competition between the Liberals and NDP for the position of non party status with the Conservatives taking a majority .
The only reason the Liberals won is because Smooth Talk Carney managed to flip the Party to Canadians like a plaid suited used car salesman dumping a relic lemon to an uniformed buyer with the “only driven to church on Sundays by a little old lady ” pitch,then aided by a couple of self serving floor crossers buying in to hand him a majority.
Let’s see where they are in a year or 2 from now as the cost of living continues to rise , intrusion and control increases and the failure of policy and promise begins to reveal its face once again only with new lipstick.
More Liberal propaganda Poilievre achieved a confidence vote of 87% he would be PM now if it wasn’t for bias media coverage in the last election.
Oh and by the way hasn’t Carney achieved so much for Canada in his first year in office ? Yuppie we can now buy a chinese spy car.
OToole would have won easily.
That is all.
As long as the new PC leader is against Russians in Ukraine it’s ok. They cheat at everything. Can’t even field an Olympic team. Cheaters. At least Putin poisons his critics.
I see the russian trolls are still here being two year olds and backing PP. Hope their war goes on forever. Putin said three montyhs. lolololol…
i will not vote conservative next time they have proved that they have no scruples. two wings of the same bird. we need a western block party that extracts concessions for every vote just like the block quebec
just copy paste all the things they say replace quebec with Western canada. then mirror them on the floor they demand something we demand the same equality baby. gooo carney
My azz is dripping with c um now.
@ Dave: And the Libbys are very lucky and very thankful to have PP. Some donated to him for his leadership defence. Got the picture yet?
Pollivere still has his job
OToole does not
I don’t know much about the guy … but if he didn’t support the ” SHORT BUS CONVOY ” then I like him already!!!
I don’t like OToole at all. He didn’t support the Freedom Convoy
Carney buying more ex Conservatives
Although O’Toole was never really a conservative
Tool is correct. Canadians do not want tax cuts, actually Canadians want to be taxed more. They don’t want good health care they want maid. Canadians really want mass immigration of unskilled workers… this is what the Libs do so PP has to preach all this to be competitive.
I LOVE the co ck !!
@ Gladu.
Otoole lost already. Lol
@Gladu.
Election is now three years away. Will Elbows Up Carney have a deal by then. He said it would be done by end of July 2025.
If they keep P.P. all Conservatives will became Liberals !
James the moron thinks Libbys are right wing. Jackass.
@ Tony Fuda: Keep babbling and enjoy the next five years of Libbys due to PP. OToole would have won.
Otoole is now bought and paid for by Carney.
Otoole is like Ford. Conservatives of convenience when it suits them. Glad the CPC Caucus fired Otoole.
@Fester. CPC got more seats in 2025 than OFoole did in 2021.
I recall all Liberals, including probably yourself, torching OToole and blindly support Trudeau.
I see the three pinheads are yapping away, spewing there fascist garbage. Everything Carney hey folks? Just slag the other guy. Nauseating how so many blind fools follow these fascist Liberals.
lol @ Rick
PP blew a 28 point lead. OToole would not have. Your comment is therefore hooey.
o’toole went too far left and lost to trudeau. some moderation maybe but a full on capitulation to carney and the libs is unacceptable
Erin OFoole was a total flop as CPC Leader. Not sure his advice is worth much considering now he is on Carney payroll.